Salisbury Maryland Kennel Club Vest-a-Dog Program

K-9 Police team, Cpl. Pinchik of the Princess Anne Police Department and his dog Max show off Max's bullet/stab proof vest to Tracie Bishop, Chair of the Salisbury Maryland Kennel Club's Vest-a-Dog Program. The vest was provided by the kennel club through donations.

SALISBURY- Every day police officers risk their lives to keep you safe. But so do
their four-legged friends.
No matter how dangerous the situation, it is the job of K-9 cops to sniff out drugs,
detect bombs and search and recover.
"When people are in trouble, people call the police," said Tracie Earl of the Salisbury
Kennel Club. "When the police are in trouble they call the K-9s."
The risk-taking K-9 cops on Maryland's Lower Shore do not have much protection.
But a new program started by the Salisbury Kennel Club will soon have all the dogs
suited up with bulletproof vests.
"These dogs will put their lives on the line and so we believed it was very important to
get them bulletproof and stab resistant vests just like the officers have," Tracie said.
"The vests that we're actually getting are bulletproof and stab resistant."
Capt. Stuart Murray of the Worcester County Sheriff's Office said, "It's been a
program we've wanted to implement, getting vests for the dogs, but we didn't have
the funds to do so."
The vests cost nearly $1,000 each and funds are tight. The program has only been
able to buy 11 so far. And pups like "Cap'n," who assists Somerset County Sheriff's
Dep. Brant Wilson, needs one.
"It's a very needed thing," Wilson said. "The nature of what we do, he tracks. He's 20
feet ahead of me on a tracking line and I have to watch him exclusively and many times
he finds the person before I ever see them."
Pocomoke Police Department Cpl. Michael Strong's 2-year-old dog Noll is also on the
waiting list.
"It would make me feel a lot better for her, knowing that she would have a chance
should something go bad, that she would have a chance of surviving," Strong said.
At least four more vests are needed. And local law enforcement officers say they
hope their dogs will not have to jump through too many hoops to get the protection
they deserve.
Anyone who would like to donate to the vest program can call the Salisbury Kennel Club
at (410)548-2110.